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Coweta says "no" to StarshipThu, 01/22/2009 - 5:27pm
By: Ben Nelms
It appeared Tuesday night that the stars had not aligned for Starship Adult Novelties and Gifts in its preparation to open the company’s newest location at Thomas Crossroads. District 4 Commissioner Rodney Brooks told more than 300 anxious residents in attendance that the business license application was being denied because Starship had been determined to be a sexually-oriented business that is not permitted in the commercial area. The praise heaped on commissioners that night were contrasted Wednesday by the comments of Starship CEO Kelly Rogers, insisting that he would stock the store and not back off from his intention to operate his business. “Based on what (county staff) have seen, and what they have been told, staff believes the proposed store is a sexually-oriented business and, therefore, cannot operate at the proposed location without rezoning,” District 4 Commissioner Rodney Brooks said in a prepared statement. “Our county staff has informed the board that they will be denying this business license application at this time.” Brooks’ remarks were followed by applause and cheering from the standing room-only crowd that packed the commission chambers, the foyer outside and had spilled down the stairway into the first floor lobby. County ordinances state that for a business selling adult-oriented items to be located in a zoning district other than Industrial it must have less than 25 percent of its business that includes those items. Rogers told The Citizen in December that his Thomas Crossroads location would comply with the ordinance. But county attorney Nathan Lee after the Tuesday meeting said county staff had determined that adult-oriented merchandise would constitute more than the limit allowed by the ordinance. “Based upon what his license said, (county staff) investigated, spoke with the owners and they believe that what they’ve been told and what they’ve seen, once it’s stocked, it’s going to cross the 25 percent threshold,” Lee said. “(County staff) have gone to other stores that were represented to be 25 percent stores.” Comments from numerous residents such as Ken Adams, Chris Pettigrew and Marvin Latham who followed the commission’s announcement were unanimous in support of the county’s decision, expressing their appreciation for what they said was local government’s acknowledgment of a family-friendly, wholesome way of life in Coweta. Many of the speakers were ministers and residents of the Sharpsbug and Newnan areas. Many taking the podium said their comments had been amended by the county’s decision to deny the business license application. Some warned that a lawsuit could follow, but asked commissioners to stand their ground. One of those commenting added an enhanced take on the situation. Thomas Golden’s comments mirrored many that preceded and followed his, but he surfaced questions that ran the gamut from economic development to pending litigation against the county to signage at the Starship site. “(The store) is already there. How do they make $20,000 worth of changes and then come here today and (the county says) we’re going to deny them a business license?” Golden asked. “Not only that, this happened in between the time the former Commissioner Leigh Schlumper filed a sexual harassment law suit against this county. She may have a claim now. But this happened between November and January. (With Starship) I’m talking about the certificate for them to go in and make permanent changes to the property. We have a store at Thomas Crossroads that advertises adult novelties. So I’m optimistic and grateful for all you commissioners, we know you think like the majority of all the people here. The problem is that we’re all at fault because we didn’t change it to 5 percent or less before.” “We’ve spent all these millions on economic development,” Golden continued. “Do you think a regional vice president is going to come in and want to move to a community that’s going to look like Old National Highway, Cheshire Bridge Road, Jonesboro? How are you going to spend millions of dollars (for economic development) when you have the new development office about two miles from this store and the new Coweta industrial park two miles the other way? How are you going to take them there without going past Starship? We appreciate what you’re doing and I hope you not only say we’re going to deny the business license, I hope you’ll go out there tomorrow, the five of you, and help them take down the sign.” Golden’s reference to Schlumper dealt with her filing of a federal lawsuit in early 2008 against Commissioner Tim Lassetter, former Commissioner Tim Higgins and Coweta County over allegations of gender discrimination, libel and slander. Relating to the store’s signage, county attorney Lee said after the meeting that the county cannot regulate signage by content. The law is very clear on that, he said. And pertaining to the ordinance provision that allows adult-oriented items under the 25 percent stipulation, County Administrator Theron Gay said that ordinance has been in place for several years. Contacted Wednesday, Starship CEO Kelly Rogers was forthcoming with his plans for the Thomas Crossroads business. Rogers said he intends to stock the store and that it will be in compliance with ordinance requirements, adding that he would go through the appeal process if needed. He also questioned the approach used by the county to determine that he would not be in compliance. “We’ll stock the store. I’m not going to let up at all. I’ve expended too much money,” Rogers said, leading up to his position on the county’s visit to other Starship locations. “You can’t just go in a store and walk around and say this is more than 25 percent. Once (the Thomas Crossroads store) is stocked I’ll have the numbers. They can come in and check for themselves. Hopefully, when they audit they’ll see I’m below the 25 percent and issue a license so we won’t have to battle it out in court. If they disagree with the percentage they can tell me what they think should be in the adult column.” Responding to questions about the wording of the store-front and streetside signage that reads “Starship Adult Novelties and Gifts” and the attention it has received, Rogers said he would be willing to alter it, but only if doing so would help bring closure to the issue of his operating the business. “We’re an adult store, not a sexually-oriented business as defined by the ordinance. If it came down to it I’d change the sign to say something like ‘novelties and gifts’ without the word ‘adult,’ but only if we could move forward and them stop messing with me,” Rogers said. Asked about his other stores and ordinance conditions present in those communities, Rogers said about half of the stores are located in communities that carry a 25-50 percent requirement. Rogers also said the Thomas Crossroads store’s inventory will include less than 15 percent of items such as pipes and rolling papers. Starship operates 19 stores in metro Atlanta, Athens, Columbus and Chattanooga. login to post comments
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